US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has approved a plan to extend the deployment of the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman in the Mediterranean through the summer as the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, according to two US defense officials.

The carrier’s aircraft have been flying in support of US and NATO efforts to bolster the eastern flank of NATO in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The carrier deployed from the US East Coast in December and is now expected to be in the region possibly through August, one of the officials said. A typical carrier deployment is six months. Three Navy warships that are part of the Truman overall strike group are also being extended.

The extension comes as the Pentagon is now grappling with how to eventually rotate the units it has sent to Europe due to the invasion. It is expected that the 82nd Airborne Division troop in Europe could be the next to be extended, because their rapid response capabilities are considered vital.

In February, the US Army extended a brigade combat team of about 4,000 soldiers that had already been on a rotational deployment to Germany for an additional 60 days.